Killing of medical student ‘a blow to the country’
FAMILY and friends of slain medical student Wiseman Mthunzi Zwane are still in shock over his death.
The body of Zwane, 26, was found last week with several stab wounds at Nhlazatshe river, Mpumalanga, by community members, who alerted the local police.
The medical student was reported to have disappeared last Saturday, when he was at home for the weekend in Mpumalanga.
He was completing his final year of studies at the University of Free State (UFS) and clinical training at Dihlabeng Hospital in Bethlehem.
Zwane was also part of the Nelson Mandela Fidel Castro Medical Programme (NMCMP), where qualified students from across the country were given the opportunity to study medicine in Cuba, paid for by the government.
His best friend, Nomfundo Kunene, shared her distress on Facebook.
“There is no coming back for me on this one. I should have dropped everything and my plans on the Saturday morning when you called me to pick you up at Carolina,” said Kunene.
She said if she knew she would wake up the next day and Zwane was no more, she would have gone and picked him up but she had been so busy that day.
“If I knew that phone call from him would be the last phone call I received from him, I would have done anything, maybe he would still be alive.
“He was going to graduate soon and had just come back from Cuba for his medical studies. People are monsters. I will never heal from this until maybe he visits me in a dream and assures me he’s fine on the other side,” the post read.
Lacea Loader, UFS spokesperson on behalf of the university management, extended their condolences to Zwane’s family and friends.
“The management of the University of the Free State (UFS) is saddened by the news of the tragic death. He was a final-year medical student at the UFS and was part of the Nelson Mandela Fidel Castro Medical Programme (NMCMP). He was completing his clinical training at Dihlabeng Hospital in Bethlehem. Zwane lived in Elukwatini and was home for the holiday during the time of the incident,” said Loader.
Mpumalanga Department of Health MEC Sasekani Manzini said the family and the people in the province had been robbed of a young and talented doctor at the hands of criminals.
“The family lost a son, the nation lost a health-care worker and a soldier that was ready to come back to the communities to share his expertise in providing healthcare services. We urged our communities to desist from engaging in violent conduct in the name of addressing disagreements,” said Manzini.
She said law enforcement agencies should leave no stone unturned in investigating the circumstances surrounding the killing of Zwane.
Five suspects have been arrested in connection with the murder.
Colonel Donald Mdhluli, police spokesperson, said three suspects aged between 25 and 27 were expected to appear at the Chief Albert Luthuli Magistrate's Court tomorrow, while the fourth suspect, a minor (17), would appear on August 1.
“The fifth suspect (18), appeared at the Chief Albert Luthuli Magistrate’s Court on July 11, where the matter was postponed to July 19, for a formal bail application,” said Mdhluli.
Zwane was laid to rest yesterday at Elukwatini Community Hall in Mpumalanga.